The British TV show Dragon's Den is adapted from the Japanese business reality show Money Tigers.
Money Tigers was created by Nippon Television and established the format in which entrepreneurs present business proposals to wealthy potential investors. The investors question the founders, negotiate over equity and may offer money if they believe the idea has commercial promise.
Dragon's Den transferred this structure to the United Kingdom, replacing the Japanese investors with British business figures known as dragons. The basic pitch-and-negotiation format was later adapted in many other countries, including the United States, where the programme became Shark Tank.
A common mix-up is to treat Shark Tank as the original programme. It is a later American adaptation, while Money Tigers is the Japanese source format for Dragon's Den.